I went to my first show of the year yesterday. The equipment is too much, the handhelds are all throw aways after a year, and the maintenance on the equipment is getting more and more difficult.

The exmark school says you must change your oil every 50 hours now. So for me that would be about 23 changes a year. That is double from last year. I thought with addeed technology things got better? Wrong.... The new pumps on the exmark is 1800.00 to fix! How poopy is this! They had plenty that went last year also.

I bought 2 new echos last year and a stihl. So I go to the echo guy and say hey my echos run like poop. what did you guys do different with the new engines? He said you cant put gas that contains 10% ethanol in it. O i said ok so your are making equipment that cannot run on gas because it all contains 10% ethanol. Its standard now since bushes last year in office. So basically echo is a one year and done throw away (weed eaters and small blowers) The stihl you have to adjust the valve after so often.

What is this market coming to? The machines on average went up about 1200. What are these manufactures thinking! you did not sell machines last year now you raise them more. These are educated people we are dealing with?

I had to vent a bit! Unbelievable..........A quick shout out to M&R you guys put on a heck of a show yesterday. Good Job

Sammy

03-03-2010, 09:33 AM

Don't buy eXmark equipment.
I heard they were going up in price.

brucec32

03-03-2010, 08:26 PM

You must use the heck out of your machines, with lots of hours. 23 changes would be 1,150 hours. Wow.

If you're talking engine oil I'm pretty sure it's always been 50 hours. The hydro oil was one change, then filter only for quite a while, but mine is a 2003.

I went to my first show of the year yesterday. The equipment is too much, the handhelds are all throw aways after a year, and the maintenance on the equipment is getting more and more difficult.

The exmark school says you must change your oil every 50 hours now. So for me that would be about 23 changes a year. That is double from last year. I thought with addeed technology things got better? Wrong.... The new pumps on the exmark is 1800.00 to fix! How poopy is this! They had plenty that went last year also.

I bought 2 new echos last year and a stihl. So I go to the echo guy and say hey my echos run like poop. what did you guys do different with the new engines? He said you cant put gas that contains 10% ethanol in it. O i said ok so your are making equipment that cannot run on gas because it all contains 10% ethanol. Its standard now since bushes last year in office. So basically echo is a one year and done throw away (weed eaters and small blowers) The stihl you have to adjust the valve after so often.

What is this market coming to? The machines on average went up about 1200. What are these manufactures thinking! you did not sell machines last year now you raise them more. These are educated people we are dealing with?

I had to vent a bit! Unbelievable..........A quick shout out to M&R you guys put on a heck of a show yesterday. Good Job

SouthSide Cutter

03-03-2010, 09:29 PM

This new pump system JD and Exmark went to that all the guys on here are talking about. Wont be so happy when they got to work on them. If you look at them its going to cost more than working on a simple wheel mtr or single pp. Think Ill stick with the old system.

grassman177

03-03-2010, 11:28 PM

we dont have issues with gas except when hot we have to run premium on handhelds. we use echo. no biggie

as far as prices going up, well, it may not be choice, it may be materials. dont know, but the idea of them raising prices now leads one to assume that be the reason, cause surely it could never be greed, right.?

yardguy28

03-03-2010, 11:39 PM

how many guys have been doing the same regular maintenance at the same times year and after year after year? and now because some dealer says you need to do it this much or that much your gonna change your maintenance schedule.

here's what i say. if you run a maintenance schedule that hasn't caused you any problems forget about that exmark dealer saying you need to change your oil every 50 hours. if you change it very 200 hours and thats been working stick with it.

i personally change my oil once a season in all my mowers. greasings get done when the manual says they do on the mowers i use on a daily basis. the others get greased as i see fit. i've never had a single problem with any of my machines and i'm not gonna change how often i change my oil just because all of a sudden the dealer says you need to change your oil every 50 hours.

question for the dealer, what changed from last year that all of a sudden i need to change my oil more frequently???

grassman177

03-04-2010, 01:40 AM

wow, those engines cant run well if you put tons of hours b4 changing oil, not smart. but hey, if it works well nuf 4 U!!!

we will stick to our regular schedule too, every 50 on gas and every 100 on diesels, just like the manual says

Richard Martin

03-04-2010, 05:25 AM

we will stick to our regular schedule too, every 50 on gas and every 100 on diesels, just like the manual says

The manuals for my Kohler and Kawasakis both say 100 hours on the oil and 200 hours on the filters. I do what it says to do. The Dixie manual says 1,000 hours on the hydro system oil and filter but I change them at around 500 since it's 2 years.

Jason Rose

03-04-2010, 05:45 AM

I want to see the Kohler manuals (engines with an oil filter) that say to change the oil every 50 hours. I've had more than a few over the years and they have always been every 100 hours on the oil and every 200 on the filter, at least as far back as I can recall. I just change the filter every time.

Richard Martin

03-04-2010, 06:19 AM

I hate to hijack this thread but there's something I just have to say.

Time and time again I see certain operators that say that people cannot operate cheaply. Costs are high and fairly fixed between operators and if people like me actually knew what our costs were then we wouldn't stay in business. I know what my costs are. I've been in business since 1994 and I intend to stay here as long as I am able.

One of the ways I do keep costs in check is by doing maintenance the way the book says. I'm not trying to beat up on you grassman177 but if you're doing oil and filter changes at 50 hours then you're spending significantly more money on that then I am and there is no benefit to it.

Charles

03-04-2010, 07:12 AM

I have never changed the hydro on mine or the filter. 2700 hours and counting. I think the hydro cap is frozen on there now:laugh: No problems yet. But doing the recommended servicing can't hurt. I don't know how I am going to get that cap off:confused::cry:
Mine recommended 50 hours for oil changes and the oil looked like it needed changing by then. I went to Mobile one a long time ago and change it at 100 hours. Looks dirty by then too.
Most fuels contain 10% ethanol. Run 89 octane, synthetic Stihl oil and you shouldn't have any problems for a few years with Echos. Keep the air vents cleaned out is a must do thing!

yardguy28

03-04-2010, 09:07 AM

wow, those engines cant run well if you put tons of hours b4 changing oil, not smart. but hey, if it works well nuf 4 U!!!

we will stick to our regular schedule too, every 50 on gas and every 100 on diesels, just like the manual says

the numbers in my post where for example. i personally follow what the manuals say to do. for the mowers i have and the hours i put on the equipment right now that equates to changing the oil and filter once a season.

my point was suppose to to be if you've been following what the manual says or following a maintenance schedule that works well for you and the equipment you don't need to all of a sudden change that just because someone all of a sudden says now you need to do it more often.

for one thing the dealer is probably referring to the new models of that year. maybe the 2010 exmarks need to be changed every 50 hours but that doesn't mean your older 2007 will all of a sudden need to be changed every 50 hours when you've been doing it every 100 all along.

pkra12

03-04-2010, 11:13 AM

Frue, not to change the subject but did they have the exmark vantage there? I had it on the calendar to go and forgot all about it.

Frue

03-04-2010, 08:28 PM

Frue, not to change the subject but did they have the exmark vantage there? I had it on the calendar to go and forgot all about it.

yes its a nice piece of equipment it has its place. I

Frue

03-04-2010, 08:35 PM

guys its the new recommendation. If you dont follow recommendations then good luck getting your stuff covered under warranty.

If every week you are putting 40 hours on that thing you will be changing oil every week. around here we get about 28-35 weeks thats a lot of oil changes. My kohler says every 100 oil every 200 filiter unless its dusty...

I just think with technology things should get better..... Pumps should not be 1800.00 i am sorry that is pure garbage.... it probably only cost 300. i no that is exaggeration. But i guess i have been doing this so long I remember when a walk behind was less than 2000.00 and a zero was in the 5000.00 range. forgive me for not liking this new fangled way of doing things. the funny thing is I am still only getting 90's pricing on lawn but its double for the equipment.

Thanks guys i am over now... I must have plowed too much snow...

MJB

03-04-2010, 09:29 PM

guys its the new recommendation. If you dont follow recommendations then good luck getting your stuff covered under warranty.

If every week you are putting 40 hours on that thing you will be changing oil every week. around here we get about 28-35 weeks thats a lot of oil changes. My kohler says every 100 oil every 200 filiter unless its dusty...

I just think with technology things should get better..... Pumps should not be 1800.00 i am sorry that is pure garbage.... it probably only cost 300. i no that is exaggeration. But i guess i have been doing this so long I remember when a walk behind was less than 2000.00 and a zero was in the 5000.00 range. forgive me for not liking this new fangled way of doing things. the funny thing is I am still only getting 90's pricing on lawn but its double for the equipment.

Thanks guys i am over now... I must have plowed too much snow...

On my old Exmark I changed the pumps and wheel motors myself for about $450 each or $1800. I have not looked at the new hydros, but if there the new integrated ones like JD came out with, and GHopper had in the 90's then maybe if 1 pump goes you have to change the whole system thus the cost $1800. Maybe somone on here can clear this up.

indy2tall

03-04-2010, 09:42 PM

I thought with added technology things got better? Wrong.... The new pumps on the exmark is 1800.00 to fix! How poopy is this! They had plenty that went last year also.

Are these the new units that are incorporating the pump and the wheel motor in the same housing? Supposedly will be more dependable with fewer leakage problems but good grief at $1800 they better last forever!

Frue

03-05-2010, 12:22 PM

Are these the new units that are incorporating the pump and the wheel motor in the same housing? Supposedly will be more dependable with fewer leakage problems but good grief at $1800 they better last forever!

yes they are integrated. A hos is about 25 bucks id rather change a hose.... not the whole unit

yardguy28

03-05-2010, 04:49 PM

guys its the new recommendation. If you dont follow recommendations then good luck getting your stuff covered under warranty.

If every week you are putting 40 hours on that thing you will be changing oil every week. around here we get about 28-35 weeks thats a lot of oil changes. My kohler says every 100 oil every 200 filiter unless its dusty...

I just think with technology things should get better..... Pumps should not be 1800.00 i am sorry that is pure garbage.... it probably only cost 300. i no that is exaggeration. But i guess i have been doing this so long I remember when a walk behind was less than 2000.00 and a zero was in the 5000.00 range. forgive me for not liking this new fangled way of doing things. the funny thing is I am still only getting 90's pricing on lawn but its double for the equipment.

Thanks guys i am over now... I must have plowed too much snow...

exactly is the new recommendation for the NEW EQUIPMENT.

how can recommendations change for past equipment? you don't have an engine that needs oil changes every 100 hours and then all of sudden it's recommended that engine needs oil changes every 50 hours. nope, not gonna happen.

the new equipment has different recommendations because they are different mowers with different engines. as time goes by engines get build differently or upgraded and they need to be treated differently.

but to say that my 2006 exmark tthp with a 19 hp kaw engine all of sudden needs it's oil changed every 50 hours instead of every 100 is ridiculous. that 19hp kaw engine is NOT the exact same as the 19hp kaw engines they are producing now. just like the mowers they come out with next year will have different recommendations because components are always changing.

i say stick with what the manual that came with your mower says.

brucec32

03-05-2010, 05:53 PM

I just checked my kawi manuals and it IS 100 hours. For some reason I had it in my head to change at 50 hours. The oil isn't much, it's quick and easy with the right fittings, so no big deal. Even at 50 hours the oil looks pretty dirty to me. I've never had a 4 cycle engine die, before I sold the mower for other reasons, maybe that's one reason why.

The reason prices are going up MAY just be simple math. They have to cover sunk costs and overhead (management, headquarters overhead, factory costs, marketing, and to a large degree payroll) that aren't changing, but sales volume is. They can lay some factory workers off, but most of the costs remain.

If you have $1,500 of overhead per unit at 100,000 units sold, you'll need to charge $3,000/unit if your sales drop to 50,000 units. Even if you dropped profit to zero prices would still have to go up to break even. My guess is they're trying to maintain profit margin on lower volumes. It probably won't work and some of them will wind up going bust as I fear we aren't headed for anything approaching "the good old days" anytime soon.

They should consider mergers for survival. I doubt any of those factories is running at 100%.